I almost DNFed this book. The font and the text was weird, which made it almost impossible for me to make out what the words were saying. Hopefully the final text of this book will be easier to read.

My favorite part of this book was the illustrations. They were beautiful and they’re the sole reason why I am giving this book more than one star.

I haven’t read “On the Road” yet, so I can’t compare this graphic novel to the short story that it was based off of, but what I can say is that it didn’t feel like this story translated well to a graphic novel. The story was heavy on thoughts and descriptions. When I read graphic novels, lots of dialogue and only a little bit of inner thought flows smoother. The lack of dialogue to some extent prevented me from getting invested in the story.

This story is probably good as a short story, but this graphic novel adaptation just did not work well for me.

Thanks to ABRAMS Publishing and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!

Available Jan 5 2021

Absolutely gorgeous. "After the Rain' is John Jennings and David Brame's comic book adaptation of the short story by science fiction writer Dr. Nnedi Okorafor. In the first few pages, we meet Chioma, a Nigerian American on vacation to see her aunt and grandmother in rural Nigeria. Soon after she arrives, Chioma is confronted with a severed head at her doorstep, a grisly reminder of her past. Quickly, Chioma's holiday devolves into a nightmare of survival. With beautiful, haunting imagery, "After the Rain" is about reckoning with our past and creating our own peace.

I loved the intrigue of this book; the story was unique and magical and the dialogue was beautifully written. The reason I have to knock it down a star is that the version provided to me was too pixelated to properly read or enjoy much of the art. What I could read was incredible and I loved this story! Incredibly relevant in terms of culture and identity.

* reviewed by uncorrected egalley / ARC via netgalley.

diverse graphic fiction-part horror, part superhero origin story (American cop visiting her grandmother and aunt in a rural village in southeast Nigeria encounters a sort of spirit monster), #ownvoices author

Based on the short story "On the Road" by Nigerian-American author Nnedi Okorafor, adapted for graphic by John JenningsDavid Brame (writer) and David Brame (illustrator).
The graphics in this grainy pre-publication proof were in black and white (not full color like the actual published book will be), but even from the little I could see this book is going to look amazing. Beautiful artwork with a creepy surreal storyline brought to life on the page. I love the lizards! The panels flow quickly and naturally and the story is fast-paced--I have not read the original story so I can't speak to how well it adheres to Okorafor's work, but this version appears to be really well done and I can't wait for Chioma to be added to the cannon of superhero lore (look for it Jan/Feb 2021).

After the Rain is essential and beautiful graphic novel storytelling. The story is powerful, jarring, and rightly described as bold. Moreover, the juxtaposition of word and image makes the experience all the more unique and provocative.

*I received a digital ARC via Netgalley*

I am a huge fan of Nnedi Okorafor (this was a collaboration of sorts with another author) but have only read a few graphic novels so this was a new experience for me. The story was creepy and good but way too short for me. I felt like it could have gone into a lot more of the main character's back story and her experience with the Other Side. This should be 2.75 but partial stars aren't an option.

On a side note, I'm not sure if the formatting was off because it's an ARC, but the text every few cells was really difficult to read even when I tried different fonts. Also it was all in black and white, which made parts of the story seem lackluster, especially the final "rebirth" parts.

One of the best graphic novels I've ever read.

"After the Pain" is a story of Chioma, a police officer from Chicago visiting her grandmother and great aunt in Nigeria. In addition to the family drama element, the story is a blend of mythology, fantasy, horror and coming-of-age as Chioma tries to find herself in the country of her ancestors. I loved the study of her search for identity written in a voice that is authentic, relatable and touching.

As far as the graphics are concerned, I really liked how it is black and white; this characteristic enhances the horror side of the story. However, the sole reason why I'm giving it less than 5 stars is that the graphics and writing were pixelated, which made my reading experience more difficult; however, **importantly** I read the advanced copy of this book, which means that this issue will most definitely be fixed in the final version.

Wonderful book for broadening your reading horizons.

*Thank you to the Publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exhcnage for an honest review.

Africa has many customs and is a mystical place. Chioma was born in the US but is Nigerian by lineage. She goes to visit and it met by rain. What she experiences is horrific and healing. The art work is exciting especially when the ancestors appear. Let this story cleanse you as the rain cleanses and nourishes. Remember things are not always as they appear, be open.
Review 200

The graphic novel, After the Rain, is based on the short story On the Road. Mystical events begin happening after Chioma is touched by an injured boy during a rainstorm. This story is mysterious and eery. I don't know about Nigerian culture or folklore, so it was difficult for me to understand some of the symbolism in the story. I still found the story enjoyable and engaging. I plan to read more books by this author and the original short story.

One of the most innovative art styles I have seen in a graphic novel. I love the way the background was both highly decorative and then occasionally entered into the actual panels of the storytelling. The art was so alive and full of movement.

The story had an overall theme of connection to a home land, but I will say I was a bit baffled by the ending. Like the short story, this graphic novel leaves some explanations up to the reader.

This is a werid dream/horror sort of graphic novel about ...I actually am not sure.

It was that weird.

A Nigerian woman who has lived in the United States, comes to visit her relatives and is touched by a naughty spirit child, which then makes her have weird visions.

Beyond that, I'm not sure what happened. The visions were very weird, and no one ever explained what it meant.

Very otherworldly, though, and great art. Weird ending.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest reveiw.

I received After the Rain through Netgalley.

This graphic novel set in Nigeria was fresh and vivid. Drawing from a short story, the plot was developed enough for a shorter graphic novel without overextending itself. There's room for developing more graphic novels with these characters and setting. There's some eye-popping horror and tension that kept me reading. The artwork was good.
The only negative is that on every device I tried reading it on, the graphics were a little pixelated and the text seemed to fade out every other letter or so. I didn't know if that's intentional or just an effect of that particular digital copy. I still enjoyed the story, and now I have the original short story on my TBR.

This was a very enjoyable book, based on a short story. I'll need to track the short story down, since I always like to compare. Creepy and suspenseful, as the lead character transforms through the book. Definitely recommend.

The graphics were absolutely breathtaking. I gathered what I could from them, and read what I could make out of the text, but it was small and pixelated and made it hard to read. I would love a more polished copy, because I think this will be a great novel!

The gorgeous artwork helped to underscore the narrator’s journey from a sense of entrapment to liberation. She learns to accept herself and her past (personal and ancestral) and that brings her healing.

A journey of supernatural hijinks exploring trauma and trauma recovery. I struggled reading some of the text bubbles and that was annoying, but otherwise the biggest negative was the ambiguity of the ending if that.

Unfortunately, I really wanted to love this but I couldn't actually read the words on the graphics. I think the publishers should work on that...

Is there a more finished copy, perhaps in pdf format, available? Or will there be in the future? The text is so small and pixelated in this ARC that I can't make out about half of it. Thanks!

I loved this one! I thought it would be in color but I received a black and white version so I am not sure how it will be once published but the cover is gorgeous regardless. This was entertaining and creepy and fun all at the same time. I look forward to more from Nnedi Okorafor! Thank you for the advanced copy to Netgalley and the publisher!